"to touch lightly in passing," c. 1600, perhaps a transferred sense from graze (v.1) via a notion of cropping grass right down to the ground (compare German grasen "to feed on grass," used in military sense in reference to cannonballs that rebound off the ground). Related: Grazed; grazing. As a noun from 1690s, "an act of grazing."

1610s, from Latin herbalis, from herba "grass, herb" (see herb). Earlier as a noun, "book that names and classifies plants" (1510s).

"stiff grass," Old English beonet (attested only in place names), from West Germanic *binut- "rush, marsh grass" (source also of Old Saxon binet, Old High German binuz, German Binse "rush, reed"), which is of unknown origin. An obsolete word, but surviving in place names (such as Bentley, from Old English Beonet-leah; and Bentham).

The verdure of the plain lies buried deep

Beneath the dazzling deluge; and the bents,

And coarser grass, upspearing o'er the rest,

Of late unsightly and unseen, now shine

Conspicuous, and, in bright apparel clad

And fledg'd with icy feathers, nod superb.

[Cowper, "The Winter-Morning Walk," from "The Task"]

early 14c., "one who cuts grass with a scythe," agent noun from mow (v.). Mechanical sense is from 1852.

also corn-flakes, cornflakes, type of breakfast cereal, 1902, from corn (n.1) + flake (n.); the process of making them was discovered by American food manufacturer W.K. Kellogg in 1894. Earlier corn flakes was an ingredient in brewing (1890s).

type of cereal grain known from antiquity and cultivated in warm regions, early 15c. (late 14c. as mile), from Old French millet, millot, diminutive of mil "millet," from Latin milium "millet," from PIE root *mele- "to crush, grind." Cognate with Greek meline, Lithuanian malnos (plural) "millet."

Old English mawan "to cut (grass, etc.) with a scythe or other sharp instrument" (class VII strong verb; past tense meow, past participle mawen), from Proto-Germanic *mæanan (source also of Middle Low German maeyen, Dutch maaien, Old High German maen, German mähen "to mow," Old English mæd "meadow"), from PIE root *me- (4) "to cut down grass or grain." Related: Mowed; mown; mowing.

by 1967, American English, probably from Italian grano "grain," or granular, with commercial suffix -ola. Earlier, with a capital G-, it was a proprietary name (reg. 1886 by W.K. Kellogg, in use into early 20c.) for a kind of breakfast cereal.

1540s, "tuft of hair," of uncertain origin; perhaps a diminutive of earlier tusk (1520s) with the same meaning (and also of obscure origin). Meaning "tuft of grass" is first recorded c. 1600.

1853 as a type of machine to cut grass, from lawn (n.1) + mower. Originally pushed by hand or drawn by horses, later also powered by a motor.